When Customers Complain Online

July 29, 2011 by Leave a Comment
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In this technological age customer care and what to do when customers complain is a much more tricky concept than it has been at other times in history. Before the rise of the social networks, customer care was done by companies and customers “having it out” in person or over the phone. The offended customer could also tell his/her immediate friends, but that was about it.

With the advent of the social web, a complaint by a customer can go viral in just seconds and a company caught unaware can have their reputation (and their bottom line) damaged in the blink of an eye. So what is a small business/solo-entrepreneur supposed to do when customers complain online? There are three principle things that you need to do:

  1. Get to the complaint as quickly as possible. This means that you are going to have to monitor your name and the name of your company online. There are several options with which to do this. Find the best one for you and monitor things closely.
  2. Respond in a personal way to the complaint. Don’t just “fire back” at the complainer. They are upset about something and you need to both understand their complaint and what they would like you to do to fix the problem. Seek to make sure everyone online who is following you knows you have seen the complaint and are working with the customer to straighten things out. Then send a PM to the customer and work with them personally to resolve the issue.
  3. Once the issue is resolved ask the customer to post that the issue has been resolved. The same people who heard the complaint should also know that it was heard and resolved. You need to also post that a resolution has been achieved to your online community so that they will have confidence that you will consider any problem that they may encounter with you, your products/services.

Not every complaint can be resolved amiably, but if the complaint is made online, then you need to allow your online community know that you are doing everything you can to resolve every issue that arises. This kind of quit response will limit any damage to the reputation of you and your company when customers complain online.

 

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What do you want in a second career?

July 28, 2011 by 11 Comments

I was talking with a new friend just yesterday about “what I do.” When I told him that I help boomers transition into a second career doing the things in life that make them happy, he looked at me with a strange look. I think the look is indicative of many who don’t equate work/career with something that you want to do.

Yet, so many boomers these days do want to do something in their retirement years that revolves around the establishing of some sort of business enterprise. The question for many is, “What do you want in a second career?”

Some folks want to explore something completely new and foreign to anything they have ever done before while others want to elevate a hobby into a career/business. Still others want to remain in their current industry/market but doing so as a free-lance consultant or trainer. There are lots of options and lots of questions that need to be asked and answered.

Time considerations, location, travel, family, and amount of income to be drawn from the new business all play a part in making the right decisions. In the end, you have to choose. You have to decide what you want in a second career. You have to think, talk, plan and prepare. If you do making the right choice for you will be much easier than you think!

What do you want? Any ideas about how to find the answers? How did you come to your decision about your second career?

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Social Media and Baby Boom Business – 7

July 26, 2011 by 2 Comments
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This is number 7 in our series: Social Media and Baby Boom Business. I hope you have enjoyed these short tutorials on the different tools Baby Boomers need to learn to promote their businesses in this tech savvy/social media world.

Today we are going to talk about LinkedIn. This platform is a great B2B social media tool. It allows you to be in contact with other business people and provides you ways to communicate direct with, learn from, and teach others in your industry or from any industry on the planet.

With the opportunities that are available to join groups (communities) of like-minded people, the ability to connect with businesses literally around the world, and the ability to exchange meaningful information with those businesses and entrepreneurs, LinkedIn is a great source for expanding your business knowledge and skill set.

There are really only three primary keys to being successful with LinkedIn:

  1. Join – LinkedIn, like all the social media platforms I have brought you in this series have a “free option.” You can receive an amazing amount of insight, education, and can give back to your industry all at no cost!
  2. Participate – Look for ways to engage the LinkedIn community. Join (and actively participate in) groups that you click with. Ask and answer questions in the “Answer” section. Accept connection requests as people become aware of you. Comment regularly and do so constructively.
  3. Share – Share the value of LinkedIn with other businesses and entrepreneurs that you know. By bringing new people on to the platform, you make it more valuable to the whole community.

That’s it! Consistently use these social media tools and your baby boom business will create an online presence that cannot be ignored. Combine your online presence with a great customer retention program and you will not only gain and retain clients, but will also establish a powerful referral program. All of this adds up to a successful second career for you!

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A Business Your Customers Can Count On

July 25, 2011 by 4 Comments
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I have read several articles the past few weeks on the subject of customer service. In these articles, the idea of the customer always being right came up more than once. The conversation between sales people was quite entertaining as the concepts of customer service were bantered around. One person said, “Of course the customer is always right,” while another declared “No the customer is not always right …”

I think that instead of worrying about who is right and who is wrong, we, as business owners, need to consider the question, “How can I treat my customers in such a way that I create a business that they can count on?” You see, if I treat my customers in this way, they will not expect me to never make a mistake. And when I do they will have the same consideration for me as they will see from me when the mistake is theirs. This kind of mutual respect is what makes companies worthy of referrals and customers worthy of special treatment.

It seems that in this day of easily hurt feelings and people being offended over little to nothing, that the companies that stand out from the masses are those whose worries are not right vs. wrong, but respect and dignity being shown by all parties. If we business owners cannot show that kind of respect to someone who is or might be our customer, then perhaps we should have the courage to not take them on in the first place. We should also be willing to let a current client/customer go if they refuse to show us the level of respect that we are working hard to show them.

In the end, we cannot please everyone all the time, but if we work to deal honestly and respectfully with our customers/clients we will build a business that they can count on!

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Social Media and Baby Boom Business – 6

July 22, 2011 by 2 Comments
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Well so far in this series, “Social Media and Baby Boom Business” we have looked at three of the five most important aspects of building a strong and sustainable social media strategy for your business. We have looked at the importance of your base camp (blog) and the two most prevalent outposts (Twitter and Facebook). Today we want to look at another outpost that can bring you significant credibility, traffic, and in the end sales to your business.

This outpost for your business is YouTube. Adding video to your arsenal of marketing tools will mark you as one of the most innovative people in your niche. To put yourself into this arena is neither costly or difficult to do, but statistics reveal it to be one of the best options on the net.

That said, videos probably need the most planning and thought for them to produce the kind of results that will bring you the power results that they are capable of. Think about these five things:

  1. You need to be sure of what you are going to say, before you get “on camera.” Very few people can just turn on a camera and begin speaking. You may not want to write a script, but you need to at least know the direction of the video from the opening remarks through the story/body of the video to the conclusion and call to action.
  2. You need to understand about how to produce the best sound possible for your videos. There is nothing worse than to try to listen to a video with such bad sound quality that you become incomprehensible. Find the right equipment and learn how to use it!
  3. You need to have fun while producing your videos. No one wants to watch a video of you being “scared out of your mind” in front of the camera. You will get better at it the more videos you make, but remember to be yourself.
  4. You need to talk to the person watching the video. Don’t lecture, don’t condescend, just talk. More people will watch your videos and respond to you the more you talk to them rather than at them!
  5. You need to be creative with your videos. While there are benefits to having a studio set up, don’t get stuck in the studio all the time. Get outside, video from your car, make those watching believe that your life is just like theirs.  They will pay more attention to you if you do.

In the end, video is a really powerful content tool. Use it wisely and you will gain extra strength in your marketing strategy!

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When Your Business Becomes Personal

July 21, 2011 by Leave a Comment
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Sometimes I think that I harp on this too much, but as I read blogs and talk with people I find that so many are tired of doing the same old stuff just to bring home a paycheck. Statistics back this up when you read that more than half of working people would like a job or career other than the one they current have.

I think it is time for people to reconsider life and what makes it valuable. I think that it is time for you to consider what you could do when your business becomes personal. When what you do so matches the reality of your being that you can’t wait to get to it. When what you do keeps you up at night and wakes you up early in the morning.

We would have more artisans and craftsmen. Builders would no longer be builders but would be a structural artist (do you remember Frank Loyd Wright?). Teachers would no longer teach classes but would train students to achieve greatness. People would be thinkers and contemplative. Life would be exciting and that excitement would be contagious.

When your business becomes personal you will do what it takes to succeed because success would have greater impact that a fat wallet or a new car. Lives would be different and better because you and your business made it so. Loyalty and referral business would be the name of life’s tune. You would serve your customers as no one else could because of your passion.

These and many more amazing things would happen if you stopped doing what people expect you to do and allowed your business to become personal.

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Social Media and Baby Boom Business – 5

July 19, 2011 by 2 Comments
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This is article number 5 in the series Social Media and Baby Boom Business. In this article, I am going to look at how Facebook works in your business social media strategy.

One of the most difficult things for businesses to understand about Facebook is that it is not a “sales site/page.” The best description I have heard about your business page is that it should resemble a backyard barbecue. Folks are invited to come, food is available throughout the event, and people just spend time talking.

The subjects of those conversations vary greatly and they are free forming and each have a life of their own. Everyone at the barbecue has access to each conversation and can join any conversation at any time. When business questions do rise, answers are given directly but a forced sales presentation is a no-no!

In preparation for writing this article, I looked at several “big name” Facebook fan pages. My favorite from the group I studied was Pepsi’s page. It provides great thoughts/conversation along with information that identifies them as a company, and provides actions that their “likers” can take to promote them and their causes.

I know that baby boom businesses will, for the most part, be smaller and have less budgeted for social media marketing, but lessons learned from Pepsi (as well as other major companies) will help us all as we make choices for our business. Observation is often the first step to Facebook success!

When people “like” your Facebook fan page, they will do so for lots of different reasons. They know you, they received a request to like your page, they want you to like their page, they responded to a contest or offer, or (usually the smallest number) they really do want to engage with you, your company, and your other followers. Whatever the reason, once they “like” your page it is up to you to get them back.

Pass me a Pepsi and let the barbecue begin!

 

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Making the most of offline marketing …

July 18, 2011 by Leave a Comment
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One of the most difficult things for online marketers to learn is how to go offline and use traditional marketing in conjunction with their inbound marketing success. In making the most of offline marketing, the online marketer needs to learn three things:

  1. Offline marketing provides another avenue for you to get your message to your clients/customers. When you develop these offline marketing skills your clients/customers will be excited about the information that you provide them from this platform as well as your online contact.
  2. Offline marketing is about personal contact with your clients/customers. As an online marketer, we are used to emails and downloads. We are used to doing business without any “real” contact. Personal contact can come in the form of a phone call, a personally constructed card or note, or an invitation for coffee, lunch, or and event. This kind of contact creates a level of loyalty that cannot be created with an email or by watching a video.
  3. Offline marketing shows that you care about more than just “the sale.” When you use your offline follow-up skills to engage your clients/customers on a personal level, they will recognize that you really care about them. With this knowledge of your concern for them, they will become more willing to listen to you, take your advice, and/or purchase your product or service.

Even though so much of what is being taught in the area of marketing these days speaks to the things we do online, you cannot afford as an online, inbound marketer to forget the power of blending your online and offline marketing strategies.

What do you think? What kinds of offline skills have you developed? How have you blended your on and offline marketing strategies?

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Social Media and Baby Boom Business – 4

July 16, 2011 by Leave a Comment
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Remember the old saying, “A little bird told me?” Well, in the world of social media and baby boom business, this saying is more true than it has been for some time. The little bird is from Twitter and what he says comes from you!

Twitter is one of the “big four” in social media (facebook, twitter, youtube, linkedin). While there are those who use flikr, slidshare, and even do podcasting, the big four account for the overwhelming majority of social media for business. Today we are going to talk about Twitter.

As of March 21, 2011, Twitter has been around the net for five years. This 140 “micro-blogging” program has gain in popularity in the past few years as celebrities, sports figures, political candidates, and even the President have active twitter accounts.

So, what can you do with this 140 character platform to both engage the social media world while building your business? Let’s consider five things:

  1. Twitter gives you a real-time look into your business niche. By setting up simple searches, you can “check in” on your niche and see what the social media world is thinking about your industry.
  2. Twitter gives you a real-time look into what people might be saying about your business. Good comments as well as bad fly across this medium at speeds that would make you head spin. Keeping up with what people are saying is especially important if you need to deal with something negative.
  3. Twitter gives you a real-time look into what people are saying about your competition. Just like your business, you can watch the twittersphere for things said about your competition. Good things help you see where you may need to improve your own business, bad things may give you an advantage over your competition.
  4. Twitter gives you the opportunity to communicate directly with customers/potential customers. Engaging your niche with valuable content always brings more eyes to your blog and more sales to your business. In this engagement you can ask questions, do surveys, and provide your community information valuable to them.
  5. Twitter gives you an opportunity to put your products and services “on sale” to those who follow you regularly. Twitter coupons and sales are a great way to judge your social media reach.

The only thing that limits your use of Twitter is your creativity (and the terms and conditions of course!) The only thing you need to do is to start. Sign up, follow some people tweeting about your niche, engage them in conversation and you are on your way. Remember, don’t sell … talk. Ask questions … then listen. Answer questions that highlight your personality and skill set. Be patient, people need to get to know you before they will “buy what you’re selling!”

Next post – Facebook

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Three Steps to Inbound Marketing Success – 3

July 13, 2011 by Leave a Comment
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Over the past year I have read a lot of websites and looked at even more blog posts on the subject of inbound marketing. The three steps to inbound marketing success that I have described in this series is the “boiled down” results of all that reading. The conclusion of all the efforts of inbound marketing is that in the end you want the people who read your blog to contact you and ask questions about you, your products/services, and how you can help them with what you do.

In order to get your current/potential clients to this position you need to offer three things:

  1. You must offer advanced content that requires a response to your call to action. This content might be in the form of a video training series, a whitepaper, or an audio training series.
  2. You must follow-up with those who contact you to see if your advanced content answered their questions or if you need to meet with them personally. (Via phone, email, or face-to-face.)
  3. You must offer new, exciting, and valuable content to that special group who continue to seek additional information. Every time this group of loyal followers asks for and receives your valuable advanced content, they are one step closer to purchasing your products/services.

 

So, now you have the basics. What do you think? Is there anything else you want to know? How can you get your inbound marketing strategy in place and successful?

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